Donna Maria da Gloria, that she may, as reigning queen thereof, govern them independent of this empire, and according to the constitution which his imperial majesty was pleased to give, decree, and command to be sworn to, by his letter of law of the 29th of April of this year. And his imperial majesty has, moreover, been pleased to declare, that his august daughter, the reigning queen of Portugal, shall not leave the empire of Brazil until it shall have been officially reported to him that the constitution has been sworn to, according to his orders, and that the espousals of the marriage, which it is the intention of the same lord should take place between her and his much-beloved and esteemed brother, the most serene Infante Don Miguel, shall have been actually celebrated; the said abdication and cession to be null and void in default of the fulfilment of either of these two conditions. His imperial majesty the emperor has been also pleased, as king of Portugal, to grant, by his royal decree of the 27th of April, an amnesty to all Portuguese who may be in confinement under prosecution, in exile, or sued for political opinions; and he has been further pleased, by his decree of the preceding day, to confirm and to continue the regency established by his august father, until the moment of the installation of the regency decreed by the constitutional charter of the Portuguese monarchy. This I have the honour to communicate, for the information of your excellency and of your government, requesting you to be persuaded that the emperor, my august master, will be most happy, if these arrangements should meet with the approbation and support of his Britannic majesty, who has given so many proofs of the interest which he takes in the glory and prosperity of the august House of Braganza. The undersigned, &c. Visconde DE INHAMBUPE. His Excellency Sir Charles No. XII.-Sir CHARLES STUART (Extract) Lisbon, July 15, 1826. I arrived here on the 7th instant, and proceeded immediately to Caldas, where I found the Portuguese regency established. Upon delivering to her royal highness the Infanta the several public acts which had been intrusted to my care by her brother, the emperor, I told her that, as Portuguese plenipotentiary, I could not refuse to take charge of papers completing the separation of the two countries, for which purpose I had left Europe; but that since they also regulated the internal government of Portugal, I must wait until I learnt the sentiments of my government, before I could express an opinion upon that part of their contents. In the course of several interviews, to which I was admitted during my stay at Caldas, her royal highness was pleased to observe, that nothing could be more natural than my desire not to commit my government, by any participation in measures upon which they had not explained their views, but that I was so well acquainted with the affairs of Portugal, that this consideration would induce her not to withhold her confidence upon any subject connected with the execution of the emperor's orders. She therefore began to state to me, in great detail, the unhappy position in which she was placed, and the embarrassments to which she was exposed, by the divisions among the regency and the ministry, respecting the adoption of a constitutional form of government. Her royal highness added, that she would return immediately to Lisbon, where she should take care that his imperial majesty's orders, which she was certain would be enthusiastically received by the whole nation, should be carried into effect. I told her royal highness that it appeared, from what I had been enabled to find out during the few hours I was in Lisbon, that the alleged illegality of the different acts received from Rio de Janeiro was the ground upon which her opponents were determined to make their stand; that I could therefore only recommend her to meet this charge, by concerting a legal mode of putting them into execution, the moment that the government should return to the capital, which we agreed should not be delayed beyond the following day. Under these circumstances, the Infanta has determined to strengthen herself, by filling up the situation of every minister who gives in his resignation in writing, and she will ensure the tranquillity of the town, by the nomination of a new commandant of the province, and by the arrest of those persons who were active in exciting the late movement of the troops. Her royal highness has also written to the Infante Don Miguel, urging him to take no step until he should have received the letter addressed to him by the emperor; and she will wait until the charter shall have been legally carried into effect, and the necessary unity of action established, which shall place in her hands the power of choosing her own advisers. I have confined my language to the tenor of the above-mentioned proclamation, which has already produced a very beneficial effect, by checking the exultation of the Liberals, and conciliating the will of the moderate Royalists; and the favourable change which is rapidly taking place in the public opinion, leaves little doubt, upon my mind, that the principal opponents of the new system will be found in the ranks of the former party. (Signed) CHARLES STUART. The Rt. Hon. Geo. Canning, &c. (Enclosure in No. 12.-Translation) REGENT OF PORTUGAL. The public mind was, in the mean time, greatly agitated by imperfect versions of what had passed, and the intrigues of the various factions were rendered evident, by the hope of the revival of the Constitution of 1820 on the one side, PROCLAMATION of the INFANTA and by successive attempts to corrupt the troops on the other; while the efforts of the Infanta for the maintenance of order were paralyzed by the hesitation of her colleagues to adopt the measures which she recommended, and by the determination of the principal ministers to choose that moment for tendering their resignation. July 12th, 1826, PORTUGUESE!-The regency of the kingdom is about to relieve you from anxiety, and to fix your attention upon decrees, which interest you generally, and his most faithful majesty Don Pedro IV., has deigned to issue from his court at Rio Janeiro. With these decrees will be also published the Constitutional Charter of the Portuguese Monarchy, which the same sovereign has deigned to decree, and which, according to his intentions, must be sworn to by the three orders of the state, in order that it may govern the kingdom of Portugal and its dependencies. In the mean time, the regency informs you, that this charter differs essentially from the Constitution produced by infatuation in 1822, and which contained principles incompatible with each other, and condemned by experience. The character of the Constitutional Charter which his most faithful majesty gives you is quite another thing. It is not a forced concession; it is a voluntary and spontaneous gift of the legitimate power of his majesty, and matured by his profound and royal wisdom. This charter tends to terminate the contest between the two extreme principles which have agitated the universe. It summons all Portuguese to reconciliation, by the same means which have served to reconcile other people; by it are maintained, in all their vigour, the religion of our fathers, decorum, and the rights and dignity of the monarchy; all the orders of the state are respected, and all are alike interested in uniting their efforts to surround and strengthen the throne, to contribute to the common good, and to secure the preservation and amelioration of the country to which they owe their existence, and of the society of which they form a part; the antient institutions are adapted and accommodated to our age, as far as the lapse of seven centuries will permit; and finally, this charter has prototypes among other nations who are esteemed among the most civilized and the most happy. It is our duty to await tranquilly the execution of this charter, and of the preparatory acts which it prescribes. If any among you should, by words or actions, aggravate resentments, excite hatred, or inspire vengeance, and interpose between the provisions of the law and its execution, he will be considered as a disturber of public order, and as an enemy of the sovereign and of his country; and he will be punished with the utmost rigour of the law. The regency flatters itself that the Portuguese people, both from the national character and for their common interest, will recognize, on this occasion, both what is their most important duty, and the way in which they may become principally useful. Given at the Palace of Ajuda, this 12th of July, 1826. (Signed) THE INFANTA. (Countersigned) JOSE JOAQUIM D'ALMEIDA E ARAUJO CORREA DE LA CERDA. No. XIII.- Sir WILLIAM A'COURT to Mr. Secretary CANNING. (Received August 7.) (Extract.) Lisbon, July 29, 1826. Your important despatch of the 17th instant, with its several enclosures, reached me on Wednesday last. I made known without loss of time to her royal highness the Infanta the great interest displayed in favour of this country by his majesty's government, and your active endeavours to give a right direction to the policy of Europe upon the present occasion. but in no other character than in that which he possesses of Portuguese Plenipotentiary. This distinction has always been most carefully marked on his side, and it has received additional force from the line which I myself adopted. The difference in the parts which we were called upon to play has never been mistaken, either by this government or by my colleagues; and you may be assured, Sir, whatever may be said of the Portuguese Plenipotentiary, the British Ambassador is responsible for nothing. I think, indeed, I may safely assert, that the British government has never been committed either by sir Charles Stuart or myself. I shall, nevertheless, bear in mind the concluding paragraph of your letter, and by a discreet use of the explanations and declarations contained' in your several despatches, endeavour to do away with every impression of the sort, should I find any such entertained. (Signed) WILLIAM A'COURT. The Rt. Hon. Geo. Canning, &c. COMMUNICATIONS and DOCUMENTS relative to the Assumption of the REGENCY of PORTUGAL by DON MIGUEL. No. XV.-Sir HENRYWELLESLEY to the EARL of DUDLEY. (Received November 14.) Vienna, Nov. 5, 1827. I have the honour to forward to your lordship a copy of a note which I have received from Prince Metternich, forwarding to me copies (which are likewise enclosed) of the protocols of the conferences which have been held here relative to the affairs of Portugal. (Signed) H. WELLESLEY. The right Hon. the Earl of Dudley, &c, (Translations of Enclosures in No. 15.) PRINCE METTERNICH to Sir HENRY WELLESLEY. Vienna, Oct. 29, 1827. Prince Metternich has the honour to transmit herewith to his excellency the British ambassador, certified copies of the protocols of the three conferences respecting the affairs of Portugal, to which his excellency did him the honour to attend at his house on the 18th, 20th, and 23rd of October, and he avails himself, &c. His excellency the British (Sub-Enclosure A in No. 15.) Vienna, Oct. 18, 1827. PRESENT. On the part of Austria-M. le Prince de Metternich, M. le Comte de Lebzeltern, M. le Chevalier de Neumann, M. le Comte Henri de Bombelles. On the part of England-the British Ambassador. On the part of his royal highness the Infant Don Miguel-M. le Baron de Villa-Secca, M. le Comte de Villa-Real. Prince Metternich having invited the British ambassador and the Portuguese plenipotentiaries to meet at his house on the 18th of October, and those gentlemen having repaired there upon his invitation, he proposed that they should record, in an official protocol, the result of the confidential negotiations which had taken place between MM. de Villa-Secca and Villa-Real, since the time of his return to Vienna, relative to the departure of the infant, that prince's voyage, and the line of conduct he intended to pursue upon his arrival at Lisbon; and the British ambassador, as well as the Portuguese plenipotentiaries, having agreed to this proposition, it was decided that they should annex to the protocol of the present conference the following documents, namely-1. A copy of the VOL. LXXI. note of the Marquis de Rezende to prince Metternich, dated 19th of September, 1827, which should serve as a commencement to the present negotiation. In this note the Brazilian envoy announces officially to the cabinet of Vienna, that the emperor Don Pedro, his master, by a decree dated the 3rd of July, "has conferred on his royal highness the Infant Don Miguel, with the title of his lieutenant in Portugal, the regency of the said kingdom, agreeably to the laws existing in that state, and in conformity with the institutions given by the emperor, his august brother, to the Portuguese monarchy." 2. A translation of the abovementioned decree of the 3rd of July, of the emperor Don Pedro to his royal highness Don Miguel. 3. A translation of the letter from that sovereign to the Infant, his brother, which accompanied the same. 4. A translation of the letter from the emperor Don Pedro to the king of England. 5. A translation of the letter from the emperor Don Pedro to his majesty the emperor of Austria. 6. A copy of the despatch which prince Metternich has this day addressed to prince Esterhazy, at London, directing his excellency to acquaint the British government of the determination to which the Infant has come, to send Portuguese shipsforthwith to England, whither he himself will repair directly, for the purpose of embarking as quickly as possible for Portugal. This despatch, which contains an historical and faithful account of the whole negotiation relative to the present and future situation of the Infant, as well as the last determinations to which that prince had come, had been read at a confidential meeting 2 E |